Romania Records €100 Million in Penalties on Undelivered Elbit Drones
Romania had accrued about 500 million lei, or €100 million, in delay penalties on Elbit Systems’ undelivered Watchkeeper X drones, Defense Minister Radu Miruță told DeFapt.ro in September.
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In a Sept. 17 investigation, DeFapt.ro reported that Romania’s Ministry of National Defense had paid an advance of nearly 300 million lei for the first Watchkeeper X systems and had still not received a single aircraft.
Advance Paid, No Aircraft Delivered
On Dec. 20, 2022, the ministry, through the General Directorate for Armaments and C.N. Romtehnica S.A., signed a framework agreement with Elbit Systems Ltd for seven Watchkeeper X systems, six land-based and one naval.
The deal was valued at 1,891,680,449 lei excluding VAT, or about €380 million at the time, and is one of several large Romanian defense procurement efforts still in the pipeline.
A June 19, 2023, follow-on contract ordered three systems plus logistics support for 825 million lei, with delivery due by June 19, 2025. Bucharest paid the advance, but the aircraft did not arrive.
Force Majeure Claims Delay Delivery
On Oct. 8, 2023, Elbit asked for a six-month postponement, citing Israel’s “Iron Swords” operation, and later sought nine months.
The ministry granted only three months and moved the deadline to Sept. 19, 2025.
Elbit then cited “Rising Lion” and received a further 33-day extension, to Oct. 22, 2025.
On March 4, 2026, it sought a third delay over “Lion’s Roar,” an Israel-U.S. operation against Iran. The ministry refused, saying the event came after the contractual deadline.
Minister Weighs Ending the Contract
On April 2, 2026, Defense Minister Radu Miruță said Romania was considering termination because of the delays.
“I am considering whether to terminate this contract. There are some devices with certain technical characteristics that, if received a few years later, are no longer relevant,” he said.
On April 17, Elbit president Bezhalel Machlis met the minister, with Israeli Ambassador Lior Ben Dor present.
The ministry said all contractual options remained open, “including the possibility of termination, depending on the company’s ability to fulfill its obligations undertaken according to the contract signed in 2023.”
DeFapt.ro alleged that generals under Brig. Gen. Ion Cornel Pleșa had discreetly protected the deal, and that Miruță later stepped back after diplomatic pressure.
Elbit, already suspended from new NATO agency tenders, can still contract directly with individual governments, even as Romania tightens rules on drone threats.
Penalties Reach About €100 Million
Almost five months after that meeting, the ministry had still received no Watchkeeper X drone, DeFapt.ro reported.
Miruță said the ministry had notified Elbit of daily penalties and that 301 days of delay had produced “penalties of approximately 500 million lei, excluding VAT.”
That sum is about €100 million and, under Romanian law, is payable when the contract is closed.
No confirmed delivery or termination has been announced since that September report.
Kamer Kurunç
Kamer Kurunç is the Team Leader of Clash Report and has led the outlet for four years. He oversees its breaking world news coverage, from the Middle East and the Russia-Ukraine war to defense and global politics. His focus is fast, verified, source-based reporting. Follow him on X at @kamerknc.
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